The four kinds of #120 abrasives of Aluminum oxide, Silicon carbide, Single Crystal (A) and Emery are blasted in dry method to mild steel plates SPC-1 through the nozzle of the liquid honing gun (Jet : I. D. 3.17mm, Nozzle : I. D. 6.35mm) under the conditions of 5kg/cm
2 blasting pressure, 90mm blasting distance and 90° blasting angle (perpendicular to the blasted surface). Abrasives repeatedly blasted 100 times are observed microscopically and the friability of the abrasives is discussed through the distribution of diameter obtained by measuring the settling velocity. The experimental results obtained are as follows:
1) Blasting abrasives are spread conically, and the velocity, the mean diameter and the density of blasted abrasives are not uniform on the blasted area, 30mm in diameter. Namely, all of these values are decreased in the direction of diameter from the centre to the periphery. Therefore, the surface roughness become rough more and more in the direction from the periphery to the centre of the blasted surface. This makes it difficult to obtain the uniform roughness of the blasted surface.
2) All kinds of abrasives used in the present experiment, especially, those of Aluminum oxide and Singl Crystal (A) are apt to be fractured until the 4th or 5th blasting due to the unstable structure introduced during the manufacturing process. Thereafter each abrasive shows almost constant fracture strength ranging in a decreasing order of strength, those of Aluminum oxide, Single Crystal(A) (little difference observed between these two), Siliconcarbide and Emery.
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